Even more interesting than your own reaction to a Peace Corps invitation is the reaction of your friends and family. You can be sure that some reactions will surprise you, both good and bad.
There are the inevitable old friends who you are surprised to see that they haven't even tried to reach out to you to say congratulations, good luck, goodbye, anything. Everyone knows that when growing up, your friends change and lets face it: as close as you were in high school, its probably not going to last. ah well.
There are friends and family who became so emotional over the fact that I am leaving that it just completely caught me off guard and shocked me. I guess sometimes I just don't realize how much I mean to people. It still baffles me sometimes, but maybe that's my own insecurity getting in the way of me knowing that I will be missed. There were even family members who I only see a couple times a year who surprised me. I know they care about me, but I guess I never realized how much.
Then there are family members who are completely against the whole idea. They tell me it's a bad idea, that I can't do it, and I should quit before I even start. I have learned to actually almost take this as a good thing. To a lot of family members I am still a little girl who needs protection from older bigger people. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I don't need protection in the Peace Corps. But I am not a little girl anymore and I am smart. I am smart enough to take care of myself and seek out my own protection from the resources I have available. As I've grown up, graduated high school and college, my family has told me to dream big, follow my dreams, and that I can do anything I set my mind to. I guess this isn't exactly what they had in mind, but I think they will come to realize that this is the right thing for me to be doing right now. Anyways, as much as I wish they would see things the way I do, their protectiveness is flattering in that I know it's just because they don't want to risk anything bad happening to someone they care about. I get that..
Finally, there are some friends, acquaintances, and family members who are so supportive, and THAT is a surprise. I have friends, who before this I had never had a serious conversation with in my life, sit down with me and tell me how proud they are of me and how much they look up to me for what I'm doing. Wow. I've had tons of people contact me asking me questions about the Peace Corps and how they too can look into getting involved in something like that. Good news Peace Corps, I'm already working on the Third Goal! lol. I'm sharing the experience I haven't even had yet on the homefront.
Anyway, I thought that was all interesting.
21 days left. Then San Francisco for staging. Then Cambodia. I have to change my location on Peace Corps Journals soon. cool.
Packing/ shopping for necessary items is not going well. If you see me, please drag me to a store or make me sit down and do all the things that I need to do. Cause to be honest I'm having trouble getting of the couch and turning spongebob off. lol
On a completely different note, I put up a new video on youtube the other day. It's a video of the Ukulele Ensemble at college that I started playing an arrangement I wrote of Bizet's Habanera. Of course there is a comical twist. Enjoy.
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